U.S. Disallows Women’s Soccer Strike (2016)

Fri Jun 03, 2016

Image

Image: The U.S. soccer team poses for a group photo before their international friendly soccer match against the Japan in Commerce City, Colorado on June 2nd, 2016. (AP Photo/Jack Dempsey) [komonews.com]

On this day in 2016, a U.S. federal judge sided with U.S. Soccer, ruling that the national women’s soccer team would not be allowed to strike, despite their no-strike collective bargaining agreement expiring four years prior.

The women’s team was scheduled to perform in that year’s summer Olympics, and the ruling prevented the possibility of using the opportunity to strike.

The mere possibility of this work stoppage led U.S. Soccer to file a complaint in early February, seeking a court order to prevent a potential strike. As a result of the ruling, the players were compelled to work under the terms of a collective bargaining agreement that dated back to 2005.